Lillian KingOutta the Park

The very first lyrics you hear on Lillian King's Outta the Park is her asking how she lost her weed. "How will I raise kids / If I do stuff like this?" she asks. She's trapped in an awkward limbo, wanting to grow up but wondering if she has the ability to do so. Drawing from influences such as Neko Case and Liz Phair and recalling the laid-back guitar pop of Courtney Barnett, King's Outta the Park is a record for those clinging to youth when it's time to grow up.

Baseball, swimming, disdain for white wine and summer — these are the subjects that preoccupy King's mind. And like Barnett, King excels at finding beauty in the mundane. An ode to baseball becomes a lament on missing the sport while there's snow out, and she succeeds in giving lines such as "I am trying to work hard / Sometimes I make mistakes / But as soon as I get a break / We can go to the states / And drive a car" real heart and depth.

There are moments where her relaxed, laissez-faire shtick really works, but the record's biggest shortcoming is that it's sometimes too laid-back for its own good. That said though, Outta the Park is earnest, likeable and doesn't try too hard to please, the kind one might put on to lay back and let the world pass by.
(Independent)